Be My DareDevil
by Braco Boy
Summary: Luxord's going to win Larxene back. And nothing, absolutely nothing, will stop him.
1. A intro about children

A story about straight love!

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Chapter 1

He was never one for excitement. He was never one to do much really. They say you can tell a lot about a kid by letting them near a teeter-totter. You can sort out the shy from those who are willing to have a little fun by placing them near strange things such as a teeter-totter. Whether they choose to exhibit a little bit of curiosity, thus leading to subtle enjoyment, or whether they choose to play it safe…but thus sacrificing what could have been a fun new memory.

Not that Luxord cared.

He didn't go near the teeter-totter. Nor did he go near a lot of things. He was such a shy little boy, never one to give strange new things a try. Not that this was a flaw built within the system or anything; he just preferred to live a bit more quietly than others his age.

He was six.

And so it was just another day in the long week in which young Luxord was forced to go to school and do his work, only looking forward to free play time and recess. One would question recess though since he spent most of his time doing just about anything and everything aside from playing on the jungle gym or swings. I mean, who would dare refrain from the swings? Well, Luxord would. He found simpler things to be much more fulfilling in his childhood, which was already halfway past till he hit puberty, which would result in lose of wonderful innocence and free play time. Not that he knew any of these things yet. He was young and hadn't the slightest clue to the many mature things in life, and he liked it that way. Just wait till he eight, when he would get his first glance at where exactly babies came from.

But this is another story.

So for those who were wondering what our young hero was doing, as he was the main character of this story; you should know he was reading.

Yes, he was reading at six. And he liked it too, a lot more than getting himself all dirty at the jungle gym or falling from the monkey bars and scraping his knee. Reading was enjoyable, and it was something he could do alone and without others, and since he was usually alone, it made perfect sense that he do this.

Luxord was reading a book, sitting by himself as he flipped through the pages and staring at the bright colored pictures before playing attention to the big bold words that were typed on the bottom. He, being young and not the best at keeping close attention to himself, was reading aloud, though not entirely loud itself. He was a quiet boy after all, and he liked to refrain from gathering too much attention. Not that any of the other kids cared much for reading. A scene from reading time would show that many of his fellow classmates had better things to do than sit silently and listen to what their teacher had to say. Bodies would wriggle and kids would chuckle and giggle over the smallest things. Someone would pull someone else's hair and there would be a scream and reading time would be over and chaos would soon be unleashed in the mighty form of first graders. And Luxord would simply go to his seat and try to avoid someone biting him or yanking him the wrong way. Luxord was a wimp of a child when it came to self defense, let alone fighting, so he did himself the favor and avoided it entirely. And should you dare ask, nobody bullied him into getting his lunch money. Not only was that pure fiction, but Luxord got lunch tickets…so it would be absolutely pointless.

And so the young blonde boy closed the book, having reading all by himself in less than the thirty minutes given during lunch recess. As one could imagine, he was rather proud of himself. He had one what he would have assumed to be impossible, but it was at this very moment did Luxord feel something that a boy like him had never felt much before.

Accomplishment.

Luxord smiled happily to himself, giving him the emotional pat on the back, before coming to the realization that he was not alone anymore.

He turned to his head to the left and noticed that someone was sitting next to him on the green bench. He blinked a few times before taking notice in the others appearance, his blue eyes widening in curiosity and surprise.

She looked like a little ghost. A little ghost in blue shorts and a white flowery top, and she was smiling at him.

He couldn't help but smile back.

He wasn't afraid, for those who had made the simple, and stereotypical, presumption that Luxord was a coward. No, he was surprised, he was a tad shocked, but he was not afraid. Luxord knew this girl was alive, and he knew this girl was not something to fear, not like the ones who wanted him to get married with them and kiss, as she seemed to emit some sort of strange force telling Luxord she was nothing for him worry about. Despite the fact that she was…a girl. Luxord couldn't help but let his smile grow a bit at this fact. Then again…she might not be a girl…no…it could be possible right? Luxord glanced at her outfit and wondered if boys could wear such pretty clothes. It was just so strange to see what he was seeing. Normally girls would have long hair pulled into some sort of fashion, which this girl lacked. He had a girl face, girly clothes…but she lacked hair; and when you're a young child who was used to things being a certain way, things like this could really throw you off. Luxord looked down to her little hands and noticed the pretty pink finger nail polish that was sloppily painted on them. Yes, she was in fact a girl.

The two stared silently at each other for a few minutes. The girl spoke;

"You're really good." She smiled and blushed, resulting in Luxord to back away a bit. But he spoke back, happy to hear the compliment, and happy to have someone to talk to, though he did keep his guard somewhat high.

"Thanks," he said, looking away for a second.

"You can read all by yourself," she asked, oblivious to the question being completely rhetorical.

Luxord looked back to her and nodded his head.

"That's cool," she said. She looked to the book and then back to him, "I can read too, but not as good."

Her smile did not fade, and she seemed to look rather impressed by this.

Luxord let his guard down a bit as he saw that she made not intention of getting closer to him. When he saw that she was looking at the book he lent it to her and figured it enough.

"Thanks," she said as she passed through a few pages, not really reading through it. She looked to Luxord for a few seconds.

"What," he asked.

"Nothing," she answered, "I was just looking…"

"At what," Luxord asked.

"You."

Such an obvious answer, but seemed to satisfy Luxord nonetheless. Unfortunately this meant Luxord would have to up his guard once more. But it was now that Luxord couldn't help but stare back at her. She was rather interesting kind of person. He had never seen a girl like her in his life, and it fascinated him. He wondered whether or not she was real, that maybe she was a part of his im-mah-gin-na-shun or something along the lines of fake.

He saw her place the book on the bench. Her stared at her for a bit longer before letting his innocent urge to find answers escape him.

Luxord couldn't help himself; "you look like Casper."

The girl frowned a bit. "Casper," she asked.

Luxord nodded shi head. "Yeah," he said, "from television. You look a lot like Casper."

Her smile didn't seem to hold so well after this.

Luxord tucked his hands into between his legs and looked to the ground when he saw her facial expression telling him that she wasn't all too pleased from what he had told her. He honestly though he was saying the right thing. But after a brief pause she spoke again.

"I'm going to have really long hair soon," she said in a very proud fashion. "My mom said that since I'm done with going to the hospital, I'll be able to grow my hair out and look even prettier than what I do now."

Luxord looked to her strangely as he tried to put t he pieces together. He didn't see why the hospital would leave her without hair, and so he couldn't help but find her comment to be a bit difficult to grasp. In the end, he hadn't the slightest clue what she was talking about. He had been there several times throughout his life, no matter how short it may be, and he couldn't recall how it would have lead to him without hair. Luxord shrugged it off, taking the assumption that she was either keeping a secret from him or lying. He went with his gut and figured that she was lying.

"How come you're not with the other girls," he then asked her. Normally most of the girls her age would be playing amongst each other, playing house or dolly or something that he would hardly ever have interest in partaking in. the fact that she was not with them made him a bit confused. The very fact that she was sitting next to him, and for the longest time he had no idea that she was next to him, was still confusing him.

She looked down and her hands began to fiddle with the other.

"…they won't play with me," she finally said.

"Why not?"

"Because…," was her answer.

"Because why," Luxord asked.

"…because…that's why," she concluded, not wanting to continue the conversation. Her arms crossed and she looked away from Luxord.

Luxord felt a bit of guilt run through his chest and he couldn't help but feel a tad responsible for this. He didn't mean to upset her, and it was apparent that she was in fact upset.

"How come you're not with the other boys," she then retorted snidely. A trait that she would learn to master in the future, though this is another story as well.

Luxord was silent. Well, why didn't he play with the other children? He thought for a moment and was able to come with a simple answer.

"I don't want to," he said to her. And it was the truth. They always picked out for something that he never found interest in, and he found it so much easier to be alone where he could find comfort than have to partake in anything that he would not enjoy. It wasn't just the swings or the jungle gym; it was people as well. He wasn't very social, and it wasn't by birth defect or by force, but by simple choice. He was a peaceful kind of human, and he liked to remain in this state for as long as he could muster, not wanting to break from it and be forced to do all of that nonsense. True, he didn't like trying out new things, but that didn't mean he was afraid to. He would, once in a while, break away from his everyday routine and learn about the bigger things in his life, and he would sometimes enjoy it.

This did not make matters any better though. The young girl was not very pleased with Luxord's answer as she was hoping for him to not be able to come with an answer of his own much like her. If anything, this answer had made her even more upset, and she was not the only one aware of this either. Luxord was quick to sense that he had made matters worse, and it startled him quite a bit to realize this as he could here the sound of her muffled mutters. He had never hurt anyone before, especially not a girl. And it bothered him that this was actually happening.

He gave into the first thought that came into his head as he questioned what to do next. She was upset, so obviously she did want to be with others, but no one wanted to be with her for some reason. And although he couldn't figure out why this was so he went along and said the only thing that seemed plausible to say at the moment.

"I'll play with you," he suggested.

She turned and looked to him.

"I don't mind," he said, once again looking away from. This time he was the one blushing. A part of him wanted her to say no at this moment as he felt embarrassment pass through him. He had no idea who this strange girl was, and yet he felt compulsion to make her happy. He dare not think the word, but according to what he had been told, he was doing this because he liked her.

As if he could ever like a stupid girl.

But when he saw the smile spread across her face a feeling of even more accomplishment rose within him, and he forgot about his worries as she nodded her head. He had made her happy and for some reason this seemed to make a worlds difference.

"What's your name," she asked, her smile out and abloom.

It made Luxord feel very uncomfortable.

"…Luxord," he answered shyly, his eyes now locked to that smile that seemed to be getting closer to him ever so slowly.

"I'm Larxene," she said sticking her hand out to Luxord.

Luxord looked to the hand, letting his guard down as he wondered whether he was to shake it or to take it. He wasn't given much time to decide as Larxene soon took action and grabbed his free hand, skipping off and dragging him off. The book was to be left on the bench, and Luxord would have to pay once his teacher realized that he had left it there to be messed with by a fourth grader who figured it would be fun to rip and tear at its pages.

But at this moment Luxord could hardly care about such thing. He had been pulled away from the shade from the bench underneath the C building and was being dragged into the light where all the other children were at play. And as the sun beamed down on him he could see this girl, Larxene, and fully grasp who she was and why she was sitting next to him rather than playing with all the other girls. He could see why she was who she was and he could see what kind of person she was and would eventually become. It was in the sunlight that he saw past her pale colored skin and saw something past it, and by which I don't mean veins, nerves and muscle. And although he would end up getting a kiss on the cheek once recess was over, resulting in him breaking into a fright of screams and desperate wiping, he would eventually come to admit that this particular day was one that he would cherish forever. Even when his teacher gave him a slip to be signed by his parents, even when his parents scolded him for his irresponsibility, even when he found out that he was going to have to go without dessert; he would still look upon said day with a smile ion his face.

Because on this day Luxord had taken a step out of the ordinary and was brought out to a world where he was to do the most unthinkable. And although it would be years before he took his next step, it was the first to be of many more.

Oh yeah, and he sorta had a crush on Larxene too.

That also helped.

"Where are we going," Luxord asked Larxene as she dragged him to the grassy part of the field that still yielded green.

Larxene turned to Luxord and smiled.

"House," she said ecstatically.

Luxord frowned.

…yeah, it really did help out in the end.

* * *

So you pretty much know how this story is going to work out, or at least the basis of what will be going on.

Or do you? I do have some surprises for this story, so be a bit imaginative for what will happen later on. I know this pairing isn't the most popular, and that I should have waited a bit longer, collecting favorites and fans before posting it up, but I really wanted this story out. It's simple and it's pure at heart, something that hardly ever comes out into written words (from me).

Anyway, reviews will be appreciated, as well as pms. Any mistakes made in this story will be corrected if you could please tell me where.


	2. Breaking up adventure time

Note thing-This chapter is all over the place, but it's freaking awesome.

Thats is all...spread the hetero love folks.

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Chapter 2

It was the following flashback that would forever enforce the friendship of the two children, and by god it would last forever. Through thick and thin, through different fazes and fashions and video games and awkward moments, the two would remain good friends and be at the aid of one another. As time went by they did go through a great deal of arduous moments that had put their friendship to the test; whether it be in the form of a guyfriend or a girlfriend or a rumor of some sorts, but Luxord and Larxene never split from each other.

And soon the two six year olds became seven, and eight, and before you knew it; they were young adults-about twenty three.

First Larxene. Larxene went through her usual changes that all girls went through, and she developed into a rather fine young lady. She did grow out her hair, as she said she would, but soon had it cut short as she was soon discovered to be very talented at running, and hair got in the way of cross country and potential scholarships. That…and large breasts, but Larxene didn't have to worry so much about that….not that she minded as much. She ran and got her scholarship to her college and she did it all without complaint.

Luxord didn't mind either, about her breast, for those who were wondering.

And Luxord grew up, got skinny and tall, and got less skinny, as muscles soon formed, and didn't grow out his hair at all. Well, he did grow facial hair, but that wasn't until after high school and Larxene did mind that. Luxord liked it and kept it though, despite her nagging and almost cutting it off while he slept one night. He also got himself a few piercing as he was one day persuaded by a friend of his that it would be cool and that alone was enough to give it a try. Luxord got an infection in his left ear as he was dumb enough to believe his friend…but all said and done, he looked quite cool with his pierced ear. He eventually got more, and he had them done by professionals, learning his lesson and forever committing to memory that using a safety pin was not the way to go.

Larxene liked the piercing, but she had grown to hate needles, as one would expect, and decided to live life without jewelry on her ears. She figured there was enough on Luxord to compensate for her anyways.

Larxene did however find a liking to necklaces and bracelets, and once in awhile, she would sport a bit of jewelry, though she was a bit of a tomboy in the end and found herself either destroying them while rough-housing or simply growing bored of them. But she did like the pretty decorations while they were nice and new, every girl, no matter how loud and obnoxious they grew up to be, liked to feel beautiful once in a while. If only she knew that she'd only have to ask Luxord, who figured her beautiful with or without the jewelry, if she were pretty, then she'd never have to worry about spending twenty some dollars on a cheep pink bracelet.

There were a bunch of other things that happened as well during the huge break of childhood and adult hood, but one can only fit so much of their lives in a page or so. There will be many flashbacks on and about, and to linger in the past for too long would be a waste of time, seeing that this story takes place now.

Right now, as a matter of fact.

"You were dumped," Xigbar said curiously as he chewed on his straw.

Xaldin sighed miserably and nodded his head slowly, his eyes looking down to his lunch, which just so happened to be McDonalds.

You're probably wondering where Luxord and Larxene are right now. Well, you should know that Luxord was in this particular scene, eating his fries that were drenched in layers of salt, listening to his dear friend Xaldin, the guy who insisted he get ear pierced, wallow in depression.

Larxene was at work and therefore couldn't make it.

Luxord was in, as you can probably guess, at a McDonalds. And another simple guess would be that he was with his two friends because he had receives a call around two in the afternoon from a very disgruntled Xigbar telling him that Xaldin was being more silently disturbed than usual. And the final guess would be to assume that he got into his car, drove about seven blocks from his work, he had nothing better to do anyways so it was just fine, to his apartment that he shared with Xaldin, and found him lying in his bed…the look of death pasted onto his face. So, he did the only thing a friend could do in such a saddened situation such as this; he took Xaldin to binge on fast food. Normally he would go for ice cream and the other stereotypical choices of cuisine for his friend to snack on, but he only had a ten on him…and Mickey D's was cheap and affordable. A ten could go a long way there, and between the three of them, it went quite far.

"I thought things were going well between you two," Luxord said finally after swallowing his future heart attacks drenched in oil. He frowned as he saw Xaldin lift his head up and give him the most pathetic face one couldn't even begin to describe. "Well…at least I figured you two were doing alright."

Xaldin sank again.

"We were," he muttered from underneath the veil of dark dreadlocks. "At least…I thought we were…I didn't think it could change so quickly…"

"You mind letting us in," Xigbar asked as he scooted over to Xaldin, finding it rather difficult to hear the sad man underneath all of his misery. Luxord sat where he was, his mind in a strange mess as he recalled a certain memory that made him feel rather sympathetic to Xaldin. He knew what it felt like to have been dumped right out of nowhere, and he knew for a fact that it really did, but all means, suck. Nothing is worse than having your heart ripped out, squeezed until its dry and empty, and then thrown to the floor for you to pick up and try to fix on your own…

Yes, Luxord knew the meaning of pain quite well, at least when it came to being dumped that is.

"You'd only get pissed," Xaldin said.

Luxord raised his head a bit and made a rather peculiar face to Xaldin. He now believed there was a reason behind said dumping.

"You don't mean," he asked.

Xaldin gave Luxord a rather deadly look. Xigbar saw this look of hatred and frowned, catching on to what was now going on.

"You're kidding me right," Xigbar said with a small amount of shock. "She dumped you because….and you're just going to defend her?"

"You expect me to hate her," Xaldin asked snidely. "You do realize I can't just hate her right? That would be wrong…"

"And so would hating on your family," Xigbar pointed out.

"I didn't say that," Xaldin said defensively.

"You're implying it," Luxord said. He sighed as he began to drink his way too creamy latte, the sugar only adding to the young death he was sure to suffer from. "Honestly Xaldin, I told you a long time ago this girl was religious…"

"That you did," Xaldin said. "But religion is no reason to-"

"And you were dumped," Luxord said loudly, catching the attention of the many people that filled the fast food restaurant. Luxord looked to Xaldin with a very serious expression. "And _why_ were you dumped?"

Xaldin looked away.

"Don't hide from it man," Xigbar said with a frown. "Hiding from it only makes you wrong too."

"Screw you guys," Xaldin said.

"You don't plan on getting back with her," Xigbar asked. He shoved some fries into his mouth and continued to talk, his words muffled though the sound of fires being slowly digested with saliva, "Don't bother man…she ain't going to give you another try…her religion wont allow it."

"I was going to explain to her," Xaldin said, looking up in desperation. "I know she simply doesn't understand, but I'm sure if I talk to her about my situation she'll come to understand…"

"Xaldin," Luxord said, shaking his head in disbelief, "do you hear what you are saying?" Luxord didn't give time for Xaldin to answer, and went on with his soon to be speech, "you're telling me that you're going to attempt to get back with a girl who dumped you simply because of your mothers…orientation…" Luxord looked to Xaldin and frowned. "Honestly Xaldin, does that sound right to you? Because it sure doesn't to me…"

Xaldin sunk even further to the table.

"I know you cared about Aeries, but think about it," Luxord said, raising a hand to add emphasis to his speech, "she's tried to convert you to Catholicism before, and she constantly invites you to go with her to mass-bright and early by the way." Luxord made sure to make himself heard at the very last part of the sentence, as bright and early meant around seven in the morning…which was considered sleep time for him. "She's very traditional…I bet you never even used a condom with her…"

"They don't believe in condoms," Xigbar asked curiously.

"No, they don't believe in birth control," Luxord corrected, pointing out the misconception. "They believe it to be another form of abortion I suppose…"

"That's stupid," Xigbar said with a frown. "I mean, good job for not using a condom and all, but-"

"We've never had sex," Xaldin announced, "she-"

"Well then, that only proves how traditional and close to her religion she is," Luxord said with a semi smile. He paused for a moment as his mind yet recalled another particular memory. "Tell me…that ring she wore…"

"It wasn't a promise ring," Xaldin said, finding Luxord's' assumption to be a tad inappropriate. "She just thought we should wait a bit longer…."

"Till you got down on one knee," Xigbar said, "you know, now that I look at it from a religious perspective; you are a lot better without her."

"Now, lets now be hasty with the pointing," Luxord said. "The point of Xaldin getting over her is a sensitive situation, one that must be taken care of with patience."

"I'm right here you know," Xaldin said.

"I'm quite aware of that," Luxord said, looking to the dreaded man before turning his attention back to Xigbar. "Now, where was I before I was so rudely interrupted? Ah yes, being dumped is a terrible thing, and despite the fact that Aeries was being completely immature and ignorant doesn't mean we should just punish Xaldin for wanting to get back with her."

"Yeah…we should punish her," Xigbar said with a laugh.

"You guys, I'm serious," Xaldin said, "she was the greatest thing that ever happened to me…"

"And your mother giving birth to you wasn't," Luxord asked.

It should be known that several people that were sitting around the three were, unfortunately, hearing this conversation. Some of them were appalled by what they were hearing, and others couldn't help but agree with some things. You also had the few who just got up and left the area, not wanting to be a part of this strange situation, no matter how insignificant.

"…"

"So…I know this chick," Xigbar said suddenly, "and I think she'd totally dig you."

"I don't care about getting another girl," Xaldin said with a frown.

"She isn't the only girl out there," Luxord said with a smile, trying to help his friend in making the matter seem less fruitless. "There _are_ other girls out there…"

Luxord was sure the emphasis on the word "are" would help.

Xaldin looked to Luxord with the most hateful look he had made in the past three days and glared at Luxord. "Like _you're_ one to talk…"

And Xaldin was even surer the emphasis on the word "you're" would shut Luxord right up.

Luxord frowned.

"Face it," Xaldin said with a frown, "I'm done."

"Don't say that," Xigbar said, putting a hand on Xaldin's shoulder. "Come on man, you'll get other girls…"

"Oh please don't try to make things seem hopeful," Xaldin said as he got up from his seat. "Face it, she was the only one who gave me the time and day, the only one who saw past my physical demeanor and gave me a try."

"And there will be others," Xigbar said with his ever so charming smile.

"You know, I probably would have taken what you said a bit more seriously if it weren't for the fact that I heard the same thing from Luxord," Xaldin said. "And hearing something like that from a hopeless romantic who hasn't gotten over his last breakup isn't very promising for my future."

"Ouch," Xigbar said as he glanced over to Luxord. The blonde was still sitting in his seat, his eyes looking to Xaldin with sympathy, though Xigbar could easily tell that Luxord wasn't all too pleased with what he was hearing. But it was true. It was true that Luxord hadn't completely gotten over his last break up, and it was true that he was a hopeless romantic over the girl he had been dumped by, so Xigbar knew that Luxord telling Xaldin that everything was going to be alright…probably wasn't the smartest of moves.

Xaldin though, was a kindred spirit, and right after saying this he felt an incredible amount of guilt hit him. He looked to his friend and frowned, already feeling the urge to ask for forgiveness, but he withheld it. He was grateful that he had friends that tried to help him get over what was a rather unfortunate breakup, mind you Xaldin loved both his family and his ex, so it was a difficult thing for him to bear, but in the end he couldn't help but feel tied out about this situation and he really didn't want to hear that he had to get over her.

"It's alright," Luxord finally said, reading Xaldin eyes quite easily. "I understand quite well what you're going though, so I'll let you get away with your current attitude, which, by the way, is shitty at best." Luxord let the hand that covered a portion of his face down and let his smile show to Xaldin, showing that forgiveness was not too far off.

A mother turned her head over to the group and frowned at them, all while her children giggled at the sound of the naughty word.

"I really liked her," Xaldin said finally after eyeing his friend the words "I'm sorry". He turned to Xigbar. "And don't you dare…"

"I didn't say a thing," Xigbar said to Xaldin, all while flaunting his most innocent look, which wasn't all too innocent looking and, in fact, made him look even more suspicious. "Though, I have to say, I know some really nice girls…"

"I'm not looking for another girl," Xaldin said as he sunk right back into his seat.

"He still needs to get over Aeries," Luxord pointed out as he began to take another sip out of his latte.

"I don't want to get over Aeries," Xaldin muttered. He buried his head into his arms and muttered some indescribable words.

Xigbar turned to Luxord.

"The food isn't helping," Xigbar said to Luxord.

"It appears so," Luxord said. He thought about the money remaining in his card and wondered whether it would be enough to help Xaldin forget about his current miseries.

"Anything out in theatres?"

"The dollar theatre is showing that one Disney movie…"

"Which one," Xigbar asked stupidly. Xaldin still had his head buried, and the two figured he couldn't very well hear underneath the layers of dreads.

"What do you mean which one," Luxord asked, shocked by the question that had been asked. Everybody knew when Disney movies came out, they were bloody Disney movies!

"The one in 3-D, or the 2-D one," Xigbar asked.

"The 3-D one has been out a while now," Luxord said, shaking his head. "Honestly, where have you been these past few months?"

"I don't waste twelve dollars on shitty movies that I can buy on bootleg for less," Xigbar said, shrugging as he did.

"I'm talking about the dollar theatre," Luxord said, "that's three dollars for a shitty movie," Luxord pointed out.

"Do _you_ mind?"

Luxord, Xigbar, and Xaldin, who had lifted his head up for the occasion, all turned their direction to the very upset mother who was glaring at them with a very upset expression. The three of them stared in silence as the message was given to them in the form of her angered looking expression, and in the form of her children who couldn't help but laugh at the fact that the word "shitty" had been used several times within a few minutes.

They caught the drift and realized that maybe they ought to leave.

"So…what movie was out in the dollar theatre," Xigbar asked Luxord while still eyeing the woman.

* * *

And about three hours later, after deciding to watch the surprisingly good Roald Dahl over the acclaimed Disney movie; Luxord and Xaldin returned to their place of inhabitance and separated from each other as one began to partake in their activity of choice. Xigbar decided, since Xaldin was a bit moody even after the movie was over, that he would simply go off to his mysterious home-neither Xaldin nor Luxord had seen it-and simply lye around and wait for something interesting to happen on its own. So it was just the two men. Xaldin hadn't forgotten about his situation, but as feeling much better about life itself and was now in his room, lying on the bottom bunk of his own bunk bed as he thought about his current situation and choices that were given to him. He was a smart man. Smart, but undeniably selfish. He was a child brought up by divorce, as you can only imagine, and he wished for nothing more, as a child would while growing up in that strnge life, that he would get himself a happily ever after sort of life. His mother, mind you, came out and, to an extent, betrayed him by leaving his father, and his father did that same by remarrying and not trying to get his mother back. You would think this would set him up for further disappointment in life, but no; Xaldin grew up with the belief that things would get better, but it didn't…perhaps this is why he chose the Twentieth Century Fox movie over Disney; all hopes for a happy ending had died within him. Now, Luxord wanted to try and cheer his good friend , as he was a caring man, but realized that Xaldin was going to be upset for a while and that the best thing to do was to let him emit his high amounts of frustration on his own. Also, Luxord knew better than to continue to pester him about how it was obvious that he get over Aeries and find himself a new girl since he had realized, during the movie, that he was really one to talk and he should probably let the conversation die. So Luxord went to his room and buried himself within his personal work, typing away at his computer and trying his best to get his mind off of what was bothering him.

The breakup.

It really was a difficult thing for him to deal with, and watching Xaldin had been nothing more that n some strange reminder that his life had gone down hill ever so slowly in the past six months. He wouldn't admit it, he wasn't on for letting his emotions, especially his more sensitive ones, leak through his exterior, less anyone figure out he was just like everyone else in the world.

For those who hadn't caught on, yes; he had dated Larxene, they had fallen in love with one another, and they did have jolly good times with the other….and they broke up; Larxene being the dumper and Luxord, poor thing, being the dumpee.

Sometime around his twenty second birthday, Luxord watched as Larxene split up with yet another guy who wasn't him and realized that, by god, he still hadn't asked her out. He had felt something for her ever since he could remember, and as he grew those feelings only matured a blossomed into what was obviously fatal attraction. Fatal because it was Larxene; every boy that had dated her ended up dead inside in some way or form, usually by emasculation. But Luxord knew he was different. The past sixteen years had taught him loads of lessons, and a great deal of them had been labeled under the topic of Larxene. He knew just about everything he could know about her, and there were hardly any secrets between them. He had been there during the fun times and he had been there during the difficult times, and there were difficult times. Everybody saw them as a possible pair, and Luxord couldn't help but wonder what was stopping them from becoming one. He valued his friendship with her, and he cared about her a great deal; but he wanted so much more than simple hugs and casual glances. He was tired of being her partner in crime and realized it was high time he do something about it.

So he got Xaldin to ask a friend to ask Larxene how she felt about him.

Luxord never really got out of his shy phase.

Several weeks later they became a couple.

It was a strange process, but Luxord was ecstatic, not that he showed this to Larxene, when he finally had her all to himself.

Not that she was property or anything…but mind you, in the mind of a male, she was treasure, and if you left it unguarded long enough, someone would steal it. And to add to its beauty, it should be reminded that treasure is something that is highly valued. Treasure is also prized, shiny, and something that you want to keep for a long time.

Larxene was all of these.

But it was knowing that he finally had her in more ways than just one, and not just physically, but in that strange emotional sort of way; it really did move Luxord. As far as he could remember, there was always something more to that little girl. Larxene had something about her that he found naturally attractive. He simply couldn't put it together, but whatever it was it kept him wanting her. She seemed to posses this strange charm, this energy of some sort that he seemed to crave, even as a boy and it only grew as he got older. But, even as a boy, he knew there was something more going on than a simply crush. Luxord wasn't one to believe in love at first sight, because he was only six years old when he met Larxene and love as a whole was not something he could possibly comprehend at that age, but looking back at that flashback made him often wonder about it.

Was there such thing as destiny?

Well, if there was then it was a bitch because it decided that it would rip him away from Larxene in the form of a break up.

Six months. The two had dated for six whole moths, and during that time Luxord was sure that everything was going quite fine. He loved her in just about every way he could possibly imagine, he respected her and listened to her and he did everything! He let her choose the restaurants, he let her pick ice skating over whatever he wanted despite him really sucking at it, he let her choose most of the concerts and concert dates, even finding time so he could pick her up early and take her out before going to those concerts…and some of those bands really sucked too. He even cooked for her a few times…and he hated cooking!

Six months…

Luxord looked away from the computer he was typing on and glanced over to the small calendar that hung on his wall. He stared hard at the date and felt a sickening sensation fill his semi full stomach as he stared hard at its meaning.

Another six months.

They dated for six months and broke up six months ago. And, in fact, four days from now, would be the anniversary, if they were still dating, of him and her deciding to start their relationship. Their wonderful, perfect, dream inspired relationship…

Where did it go wrong exactly?

And why was it that Xaldin had to go and remind him about how much life was unfair to him?

Luxord turned back to his computer and began to type again. His mind was full of swear words as he felt that strange hatred for her that was born after her saying it was time to end it began to whisper thoughts into his head. Not screwed up things, Luxord wouldn't dare think those thoughts about her, but merely just blame. He knew he had done nothing to deserve such a break up, something so quick and out of place, and the fact that she had never told him why made it even more frustrating. As far as he was concerned there was no reason behind it other than she wanted to cause him pain, which he knew in reality wasn't true. But it gave him something to put blame on…so it helped.

Luxord gave a sigh as he sank into his seat. He stared at the rather long paragraph that he had typed out, impressed with his typing speed and choice of words. It was so detailed and full of enriching words, chalk full of description and detail. Reading to himself at a young age had done good by him, that was for sure. The active imagination that he had as a boy became the vivid imagination of a writer, and it showed in his work quite well that he was more than a simple fan writer. There was quite a bit in this paragraph, and one could get a lot from it as well.

He smiled.

Too bad he was going to have to delete it all.

Luxord clicked his mouse and scrolled up the page, black going over what he had written, and without a feeling of remorse, he deleted the paragraph.

She was an inspiration to him.

Too bad he wasn't writing a sad romance novel; otherwise he would have kept up that paragraph.

No, not even that. Even if he was writing such a novel he still would have deleted it. He couldn't bear with the idea of anyone reading his misery in the form of the book. He knew people made millions writing sad songs about break ups from long ago, but he wasn't into that kind of masochism. Even if Xaldin had walked in to his room and told him what he wrote was fantastic and should be saved for later use or reference, not that Luxord would have let him read it in the first place, he still would have deleted the paragraph.

Luxord wasn't a coward when it came to facing his problem; he just preferred to not have to deal with it. Besides, he wasn't afraid of this, he just hated it with all his heart.

Maybe he ought to tell Xaldin he was sorry for even trying to mention the idea of there being other girls out there? Maybe there was only one girl out there for him, and maybe he too, only had one girl out for him as well.

"I need coke," Luxord muttered to himself as he pulled himself from the seat. He wasn't thirsty or craving the drink, he just figured that putting his mind on some other idea or thought would be a good way fro him to go through the day without wasting his short lived brain cells lives. He had gone over this many times before, and he knew that thinking about it was really a waste of time. There was no point as to think about this break up as it was old news and thinking about it would not change a thing. He had dated girls before Larxene, and he had lived without her being a major part of his life, so he knew he could live without her. He was doing this right now. And he was doing a pretty decent job at it as well.

And so, with the grace that only a man like him could posses, he dragged himself out of his room and began to zombie walk out to the hallway. As he opened the door he could hear music being played, good music too, which meant that Xaldin was not going to be in mourning for weeks like he assumed he would be. Luxord figured by dinner time he would be back to half the man he was and by the end of the week he'd be over her. If he was lucky he would hear Xaldin say mean things about Aeries and call her names, which was always a good sign. Even he had done the same to Larxene, not in front of her face…or anyone else's, but in the sanctity of his room where no one could here his mutters of anger.

But when Luxord took a step into his living room he saw Xaldin sitting there on a couch, he could easily make out the fair blonde girl sitting next to him and talking away as if she had been in the house all her life, not taking note to Luxord's appearance at all.

Larxene had entered his fortress.

She was sitting right next to Xaldin, chatting away as she tried to get him to agree with whatever she was saying. He wasn't sure what exactly was going on, but from the amount of "no" and "come on" he could figure she was trying to get him to do something he didn't want to do.

How long had she been here? Why was it that he didn't here her knock? Did she still have a house key?

Luxord stood silently as he watched the blonde talk to Xaldin, and Xaldin talking right back to her. He glanced at the small clock that was hanging from a wall and checked the time, trying to figure out when the hell she managed to sneak into the house without him realizing it.

"Luxord."

Luxord blinked and looked down to where the two were sitting.

Xaldin sighed and shook his head.

"Could you please tell Larxene that I don't need an emotional retreat," he said simply, his head still shaking in disbelief from whatever she had said while he was in his room.

Luxord frowned. Did Xaldin not realize that he had not heard a thing the past….however long they had been talking?

"What," he asked.

"Larxene thinks I need some time off," Xaldin said, "healing time."

Larxene smirked. "You make it sound as if you've lost a family member or something." She moved closer to the dread locked man and rested her self next to him. "I was saying nothing of the sort…I was merely implying that you should go out with me and Xigbar…"

Luxord frowned.

"And I told you there would be no point to it," Xaldin said. "I have a job…"

"So do I," Larxene said, "and I'm sure you can get a few days off to hang out with us."

She looked to Luxord with a smile.

"You agree with me right," she asked. "A few days would be good for him…"

Luxord sighed as he approached the two. He was completely at lost for words as he tried to make out what was going on in his mind.

"Hello Larxene, nice to see you too, how have you been," Luxord said hastily as he sat down on the sofa lying against a perpendicular wall. "Fine? That's nice, and how are things with Axel? Great? Good for him…"

"Yeah yeah," Larxene said. "Don't be such a baby."

"A simple hello…."

Larxene frowned, "hello Luxord-now, answer the question."

Luxord sighed.

"I have no idea what the heck is going on," he answered. He looked to her and frowned. "How in the hell did you get in?"

"You're door was open," she answered quite casually. "A rapist could easily have his way with you two…you should really try locking the door." She relaxed into the furniture and smirked. "Who knows who could get in here?"

"Well, you're already here so I'd like to think the worst has already happened," Xaldin said with a smirk on his face.

Larxene got up from her position to give Xaldin a hit on the shoulder.

"Ha ha…very funny," she said, frowning at the joke, "I come all the way over here to offer you a chance of a lifetime and you decide you're going to treat me, you're best friend-"

"You're not Luxord," Xaldin said in false astonishment.

Larxene rolled her eyes.

"Why are you here," Luxord asked suddenly. "Xaldin is already dangerous enough in his state as it is, you here will only lead to what will be my untimely death."

"Well," Larxene said, pulling off her fake tone of shock quite well.

"Wait, I just finished calling you my best friend and you go and use me in your insult," Xaldin asked in surprise. He turned to Larxene, "ok, I take that back; you're my best friend."

"Why _thank you_ Xaldin," Larxene said in an ever so polite tone.

Luxord wasn't all too sure whether he should take this moment seriously or not. Either Xaldin was being funny, which he doubted, or he was a rather fast healer…..which he also doubted.

"So…why are you here," Luxord asked again. Mind you, Luxord wasn't trying to be a dick to Larxene. Just because he had previously thought about her and him being dumped by her did not make him suddenly feel the need to harp on her without purpose. He really was curious as to why she was here. He knew well enough that she was here to comfort Xaldin, but the fact that she had driven from her job, which she disliked, to this place, which was about a twenty minute drive, and on a strangely hot day; it really made him think. He had remembered Xaldin mention a retreat, but like hell if he really had a general idea of what that really meant.

Larxene smiled.

"Well, you know how me and Xig go out to Mammoth during break to run about and train our-"

"Ugh," Luxord groaned.

Larxene was not pleased with his reaction.

"What the heck was that "ugh" for," Larxene quickly asked. "I didn't even finish."

"There was no need," Xaldin said, giving off an apathetic smile as he did. "It doesn't take much to figure out what you got planned."

"And what's that huh," Larxene asked defensively. "Come on genius; tell me what I was planning."

"You were going to drag me up to the middle of nowhere, during the middle of March, which would mean the middle of nowhere with a ton of snow, and leave me in a hotel room while you and Xigbar attempt to break your personal records," Xaldin said with some disgust. "Thanks but no thanks…"

"You know…when you put it that way, it sounds much nicer," Luxord said.

Xaldin made a face.

"What were you thinking?"

"That they were going to make you run with them."

Xaldin paled, "yes, that would be much worse."

Larxene groaned.

"You guys make it sound like I'm trying to torture him," she said in a half whine. "I was just thinking it would be a good idea for him to go out and try to forget things." She pouted a bit and gave Xaldin an innocent sort of look. "Sides; I would have left you in a Jacuzzi, not the hotel room…"

"How very thoughtful of you," Xaldin said, "but I think I'll be fine here; where I won't freeze to death."

"And what, let you think about her and drive by her house and call her and beg for her to reconsider," Larxene asked repulsively. "I think not-I'm here to help heal…"

"Luxord, tell Larxene I don't need her help," Xaldin asked in a whine. "Tell her I have you to do that for me or something…"

Luxord thought about the suggestion, and he literally considered saying this all to Larxene. The idea of being in the cold mountains, with hardly any internet reception, unless you go to the local Starbucks, sounded just awful. There would also be snow and bears and a whole slew of other unappealing things there as well, and a man like Xaldin would not last a day there.

But then again, what Larxene had said did prove a point. He would be stuck in the middle of nowhere; but he would be so busy trying to not go insane that he would hardly have any time to think about aeries. He would be too busy trying to keep warm, trying to find a television station that worked for him, trying to keep sticks out of his dreadlocks that he couldn't possibly find the time to think about that woman. And it would be so cold that he wouldn't be able to mast….err…think about all the good times they shared with one another.

Plus he would have the whole apartment to himself.

In a way, Larxene was doing a good deed. Sure, it was a bit hellish, but it was a good deed nonetheless.

"I don't know…," Luxord muttered, "you could use the fresh air and sunlight…"

Xaldin's jaw dropped a little.

Luxord quickly went on the defensive as he tried to find reasoning behind his rather suspicious answer.

"I mean, she took the time and liberty to plan for you and-"

"Speaking of planning," Xaldin said suddenly. He glared at Larxene and smiled. "you had to have already booked a hotel to stay in, considering how many people go up there while there's snow…there's no way you could have possibly planned ahead to make room for me." He reclined back and crossed his legs as he smiled triumphantly. "There's no way I would be able to go, unless you plan on me sleeping on the couch."

"Well…"

"Oh hell Larxene," Xaldin moaned.

"It only cost me an extra three hundred," Larxene said with a smile.

"Consider it a waste of-"

"-a night," Larxene said, her smiling growing a bit.

Luxord, who unfortunately happened to be breathing at the moment, began to choke upon his sir after hearing that. Xaldin was worse as he found himself choking on his own words.

Xaldin looked to the young woman as if she had gone mad. On a normal occasion, unless there was an emergency, she would be up there for about a week. You add three hundred a night to the mix, and you find yourself with quite a load of money being spent.

Luxord looked to Xaldin with a very serious look on his face, and as much as Xaldin tried to ignore it, he found that there was no way around it. He had to go now. It didn't matter how much he didn't want to go, he literally had to go now. There was no way he was going to let Larxene waste that much money on him; it just wouldn't be right.

"…when did you plan this," he asked weakly. "Just tell me…how did you pull this off in such quick notice."

The blonde smiled at the disgruntled man, "I have my ways…"

Xaldin sighed.

"You were going to mention this if I had said no after so many times," he muttered.

"Yes," Larxene said, not feeling a hint of shame behind her devious planning.

"And you were going to guilt me into it even if I had still said otherwise," he added on.

"Of course," she said.

Xaldin paused and stared into her eyes for a moment. Luxord waited patiently to find out what else she was hiding from both of them.

Xaldin took a deep breath, "and you even went as far as to buy me a bathing suit for the Jacuzzi."

"Actually, I plan on having you and Xigbar take care of that yourself," she said, "but yes; I did plan on getting you one from the beginning."

Xaldin gritted his teeth, "woman…"

"Man," Larxene said back, "you have two weeks to tell your boss that your going out, so I suggest you plan ahead…because you are going."

"Couldn't you take someone else," Xaldin asked.

Luxord shivered, fearing the worst as he saw the blonde think about it for a moment.

"…well, Axel is going to be busy filling in for me while I'm away," she said.

"Couldn't you invite another friend," Xaldin asked. "I mean…"

"But Xaldin," Larxene asked, "I thought you said I was your best friend…"

"…"

Luxord chuckled.

Larxene got up from her seat and stretched a bit before finding herself victorious and deciding that she could now leave after everything had been said and done. "Well then, I'll see you guys later, right?" She smiled at Xaldin and was about to walk off into the hallway that lead to freedom when Xaldin literally shot up from his seat in anger.

"Wait," he said in anger. "Just what the hell am I supposed to do for a whole week up in the mountains," he asked, "you literally cannot expect me to just hang around all day while you and Xigbar go and run; do you?"

"Good point," Luxord said. He looked to Larxene and frowned.

He still wanted the apartment for himself for the week, and by god, if Xaldin was not going to go then he would be extremely upset. I mean…imagine all the things he could do without having to worry about Xaldin seeing him or catching him in the moment. It would be so awesome.

"Of course I don't," Larxene said. "There will be plenty of things for you to do while we're up there."

Luxord smiled a bit.

"You can tour around and look at all the famous spots," Larxene suggested.

"That sounds fun," Luxord said to Xaldin as he got up from his seat, figuring he'd go back to his room and return to his typing.

"You can shop around at the town center," Larxene also pointed out.

Xaldin glared at her.

"Shopping is always fun," Luxord said as he passed by the two and made his way to his room.

"Or you can be pouty all day with Luxord," Larxene said with her charming smile. "It'll be like you've never left home."

"Eh," Luxord said, turning around and looking to Larxene with surprise and horror.

Xaldin's expression seemed to be similar in the fact that he was surprised to hear that part about Luxord, though he lacked the horror in his face.

"Wait…," Luxord said, putting his hand on the girls shoulder, "I know you're not implying what I think you're implying…"

"I'm not implying anything," she said. "I'm stating the fact that Xaldin can do an assortment of things while he's up in mammoth with us."

"But you mentioned my name."

"Yes."

"Which would imply that I'm going as well," Luxord said with tension in his breath.

"Well of course you're going," Larxene said.

"No…no I'm not," Luxord said.

"Yes, yes you are," Larxene said.

"No…"

"You're going," Larxene said.

"I don't think so," Luxord said, "you may have dragged Xaldin into this strange sick plan of yours, but I'm not going for it."

Larxene pouted.

"That won't work on me, I know you too well," Luxord said. "You think I'm going to feel sorry for you then you've gone mad, woman."

Larxene frowned as she realized that Luxord had known her for too long to not be able to feel sorry for her about stupid things like this. No, if he was going to feel sorry for her it would be for a justified reason, and vacation trips didn't fall into the category. However, she was smart and she knew that there were other ways of getting Luxord to bend to her will. She didn't have to work too hard to get him to do what she wanted, and she knew from previous moments in time when she had succeeded in getting him to do what she wanted.

Luxord was never one to go out and do things that most children, teens, and young adults would often do. He never went on the teeter totter, and if one thought that was surprise enough then they were sure in for bigger ones up ahead. He was just a shy young thing, and shyness is a hard thing to remove from a human. Anything that seemed to be way out there was just not appealing to him, and when you had a friend like that it could make accomplishing certain goals a bit difficult. Getting Luxord to climb a tree that obviously wasn't made for climbing was an arduous task, but with time Larxene learned that there were certain words one had to use in order to get Luxord to climb the bloody tree. Grabbing his hand and dragging him would only go so far, you had to use both hands when climbing, so she hearted to be vocal when times of physical motivation wasn't enough.

And so she spoke;

"Luxord," Larxene said, "you're going."

Luxord opened his mouth to retort, but Larxene didn't give him the time and day to even try to talk back.

"You're going and don't you dare say you're not," she continued, removing the older blondes hand from her shoulder as she looked into him straight in the eye with confidence. "You're going to go, and do you know why?" she placed a finger on his mouth when he was about to answer, "you're going to go because three of your only friends, or at least the ones that matter, are going and I'll be goddamn if you spend a whole week alone in this apartment doing nothing but writing your stupid stories that only we, your friends that matter, buy."

Luxord was speechless.

"…that was a tad cruel," Xaldin said.

"Had to be said," she said, her eyes still locked on to Luxord's. "I'm not going to leave one friend out in the dark while I help another…that'd be stupid."

"You know," Xaldin said, "you could just leave both of us here…"

"Yes, but that would be too easy," she said, turning to Xaldin and leaving Luxord still speechless. "So…two weeks, you have plenty of time to plan."

Xaldin sighed.

"You should be honored that I've invited you," she said as she headed out to the hall, Xaldin following her to let her out. "Think of all the fun we'll have."

"A week with two loud mouths," Xaldin said unenthusiastically, "I'm shaking in anticipation."

"That's the spirit," she said, letting Xaldin open the door for her. "Keep that up for the next two weeks and who knows, you may actually enjoy yourself while you're there.

"I doubt that," Xaldin said. He moved aside and let Larxene pass him about halfway before grabbing her arm and frowning at her. "You do realize I'll never hear the end of him right?"

Larxene shrugged.

"I'm the one who is supposed to be upset and bitching about my ex…not him," Xaldin said.

"You can hate life together," she said with a smile. She leaned over and gave Xaldin a kiss on the cheek and headed out to her car, laughing happily as she did. Xaldin could only stare at her backside as she walked off and got in to her vehicle of choice before driving off, going above the speed limit as usual.

Xaldin groaned.

He walked back into the hall and then into the living room, seeing that Luxord was nowhere to be seen. He thought about possibly going over to check his room, but figured it was better if he go on and listen to his music rather than try to figure out what Luxord was up to. He remembered the comment Larxene had said about his stories and groaned, knowing there would be consequences later on in store for him. To think this day started off with him being dumped…and now it lead to this. He looked to see what time it was and sighed when he realized it would still be a good six hours before the day ended.

"I'm going to bed," he muttered.

Now, as for Luxord, our hero in this fairytale of a story, he was in his room. What he was doing, one may ask, well, he was packing.

Yes, he was already packing.

No, he was not eager to get ready for the trip to come, and no, he wasn't trying to plan everything ahead. He was just packing in anger, and the reason was, well...nothing in particular. He was just frustrated and figures it to be the only thing he could do at this point. Larxene had left a very bad taste in his mouth, so in no way was his packing inspired by her. Ok, maybe a little, but it wasn't enough to where he would be eager and ready on the day of departure, he would make sure to complain all the way.

Luxord stared at his already half filled bag when he suddenly realized that he had been working on his current story of choice before Larxene had to go ruin it all. He looked up to his screen saver and stared at the minimized bar on the very bottom. He couldn't feel a dab of inspiration left within him as he heard her words ring into his ear about his stories. He knew he had people reading them, otherwise he couldn't be able to afford the simplest things in life, but the fact that she had said it alone made him feel empty inside. It really was easy for her to make him feel all sorts of things. What she had said was enough to make him not want to write. She made him feel bad…

Luxord let himself fall into his bed as he tried desperately to figure out when and where she realized how easy of a hold she had on him.

"Damn," he muttered as he gave up.

Larxene, the words she had said to Luxord left him empty, upset…and oddly enough, slightly aroused.

"I'm going to make that week hell for her," he concluded as he got right back up to pack. "She thinks she won, no -she did not-a battle does not declare the status of a war…"

And so he finished packing, not realizing until Wednesday that he was low on clothes as he had packed most of his belongings into his bag.

Utter failure.

I think I'm going to have to up the rating for this story...I just think it's going to happen...


	3. The long drive over

Wow, I updated

* * *

Luxord curled into a ball and covered himself as the bright light was turned on, instinctively hoping it would be enough for him to hide from the morning antics and go back to sleep. And of course, it was never enough. As if the sounds of Larxene walking over to his bed and humming obnoxiously loud weren't enough, after a few seconds of him squinting his eyes and the covers were soon removed and pulled away from him, exposing him to the accursed light and sense of reality. The cold air hit his exposed arms and legs, his senses springing into action without much of a choice.

"Morning," Larxene said with her all too cheery smile, hovering above him with the sheets tightly clung in her hands. Once again Luxord questioned as to how she had got into the house.

Luxord could only stare at her with a blank expression; his mind was still lost in that in between of awake and REM, a real shame since he really wanted nothing more than to give her a really hateful look. He could definitely see her standing above him, that all too pleased look on her face as she stared down at his tired body. He could definitely see this, but for some reason he just couldn't compute as to why she was here in the first place.

"…what time is…," he asked weakly, looking around as he tried desperately to remember where he put his alarm clock.

Larxene chuckled. "Three thirty," she answered.

Luxord looked right back up to her and just stared. In all honesty, he couldn't think of a reason as to why he was awake at this moment. He could literally believe that Larxene had snuck into his room early in the morning just to wake him up and cause some sort of disorder. He blinked a few times and wondered if perhaps this was one of those dreams…just a bit more deranged and twisted. If the case; he would gladly take action.

"In the morning," she then added. "Nice shirt by the way…"

Luxord just had to look down and stare at his watchmen shirt at that moment. And of course, he ended up reddening.

No; his mind wasn't that twisted as to have Larxene enter his dreamland.

Oh, what sin did he commit in his last life to have deserved this kind of punishment?

But as Luxord was about to question the next actions; whether it be to strangle Larxene or simply fall back asleep, Xaldin walked by the door, a ipod in his hand and the look of exhaustion spread across his face. He looked to Luxord, then to Larxene, and smirked.

"Good morning," he said to Luxord, giving a small wave before walking past the room, heading out to the hall and out the door.

"Don't insinuate," Larxene said angrily as she removed herself from her position and walked after Xaldin. "You know I wouldn't…"

"I wasn't insinuating a thing," Xaldin yelled back with a laugh.

Larxene frowned. She then turned around and looked to Luxord, who was still sitting in his bed with the dumbfounded look on his face.

"You got ten minutes," she said. She looked around the room and sighed. "Where's your shit?"

It was at this moment when the past activities of the last two weeks seem to all hit him in the head, the words "It's finally happening" hissing deep within his mind. It held a very hateful tone and the aftermath of the hiss seem to echo in his brain for several seconds. He groaned and shook his head, his hand covering his face as he then realized what today was.

It was Monday.

He was about to spend what would most likely be several hours in a car, and that was assuming he would have only three bathroom breaks, and would then have to spend a week trapped in a hotel as he tried desperately not to freeze to death all while bearing with the fact that there would be no laptop for him nor internet. And this was only the tip of the iceberg. Luxord was pretty good at nitpicking at anything that could possibly be a bad thing, and the past two weeks had been long enough for him to easily come up with a long list as to how awful the following week would be. He had all sorts of reasons as to why he ought to stay behind; being surrounded by tourists and having to wear heavy clothing only being the starters to his list.

"Luxord."

Luxord jumped from his bed and looked to Larxene, still tired and therefore frightened as hell.

"Your bag," Larxene questioned. "Where the hell is it?'

Luxord looked around his rather messy room, though it wasn't as bad as the regular guy's room, and stopped at a pile of what appeared to be filthy clothes. It actually was hard to tell if it was or wasn't clean, considering that he had to repack last night due to his prescheduled packing two weeks ago. This just proves that one shouldn't spend the last minute trying to get ready as he now couldn't help wonder what was actually clean and what was dirty.

"There," he said as he bent over and grabbed a pair of jeans that were so kindly enough to be placed right next to his bed. In reality, he had worn it the previous day and simply left it there, but Luxord was in that point of mind where what was real and fake had yet to be separated. He never woke up at three in the morning; he never woke up earlier than eight. He was three hours too tired…

He watched Larxene walk over and removed the huge pile of clothes, her face holding that semi look of disgust as she removed what she assumed to be dirty clothes as she made her way to his bag.

Luxord felt a warm feeling rise within him. It made him smile.

"Really," he heard her ask.

He turned and looked to her.

"What," he asked.

"You're going to wear that," Larxene said, pointing in disgust.

Luxord looked down and shrugged.

"You wore that all night long," Larxene said with a frown, her hand pointing to his shirt.

Correction, he had worn that all night long and the day before. But you know quite well Luxord wasn't going to tell Larxene that. Mind you, he wasn't normally this filthy. Luxord adored cleanliness just as much as the average human; he was just too tired to really give a damn now.

Did we mention he was tired?

"You said you liked it," he said in a desperate retort. He looked to the alarm clock, which of course was right where it belonged, on the drawer next to his bed. "It's been seven minutes…"

"You can change in three minutes," Larxene said.

"I need to brush my teeth," Luxord said as he hurriedly put on a pair of chucks. "Besides, you said you liked the shirt…"

"Don't be filthy," Larxene said.

Luxord got up and passed her by, grabbing on to his bag and giving it a good yank before taking it back from her clutches. He walked off.

"I'm getting you clean clothes," he heard her say as he made his way outside, doing his best to not go insane from the combination of her voice and the icy cold air. He managed to find a joke within all of this and smiled.

"Yes mum," he said with a half laugh before walking out of the complex area and out to the parking area outside. He looked around for a bit and found a Saturn Vue sitting alone across the street, lights turned on inside and two familiar faces within it. He hurried over, not realizing that the chances of him getting hit were literally one in a million at three in the bloody morning and made his way to the unfamiliar vehicle.

"Where's Larxene," Xigbar asked as he took the bag from the younger blonde.

"Picking out my outfit," Luxord said with a cocky smile.

"How adorable," Xaldin said as he pulled out on of his earphones. "And she tells me not to insinuate about things…what a hypocrite."

For some reason Luxord couldn't help but find what Xaldin had said to be hurtful in some way. He wasn't quite sure how, and he really didn't try to look too deep in it, as he was still very tired. He hardly ever thought about the strange dream of them ever getting back together, but when he did it really did control his very mind. Perhaps it was an instinctive hope of his that made him want to try to like what Xaldin said and believe in the thought that Larxene may want to get back with him. The reason; he could really care less, but hey…

And now he was awake…and his mind was flooded in his every popular brooded misery.

"I'll be right back," Luxord said as he walked back to the complex. "I need to get a few more things before we go out."

"Larxene specifically said you couldn't bring your laptop," Xigbar said with a smirk, "and you should know I'm in a particular snitchy mood right now."

"I know better than to end up being the one to wake up the whole neighborhood," Luxord said. "I just need to tidy up is all…"

"I told you," Xaldin said with a yawn, "set the alarm for three…"

"As if it would have done any good," Luxord said as he hurried off. He didn't make it very far though as he found Larxene walking out the complex, a small bag in her hand and a toothbrush in the other.

"About face," she said.

"Why?"

"I got your damn toothbrush," she said, holstering the blue piece of plastic up to him. "And clean clothes too, "she added. "You better change into them at the next rest stop-I won't have myself hanging around you smelling like you are…"

"If I do recall, you never mentioned anything about my current stench," Luxord said as he took the bag of clothes in his hand. He opened it up; not really trusting what may be inside.

"Don't worry," she said, "you'll look just fine for picture day."

"Oh thank heavens," Luxord said as he closed the bag.

"Come on now," she said. "We're leaving."

Luxord sighed as he headed for the car once more, trying his best to not go terribly insane and drop to the floor, crying and screaming and begging tom please stay home. He gave one last look to the apartment complex that he, for the first time in his life, really missed and loved, and frowned.

"How did you lock the door," he asked curiously.

"Oh," Larxene said. "I still have the keys you gave me."

"Oh…"

Well of course she did.

* * *

Nothing could really be said about the first three hours. Xigbar and Larxene took turns at the wheel, only changing when they hit a gas stop, usually for food or the need to relieve oneself, and would usually make small talk with one another, but for the most part it was a relatively quite ride. Xaldin and Luxord, both being used to staying up late and sleeping in, slept through these three hours and made not a sound as Larxene and Xigbar went at least twenty over the speed limit. It wasn't until the fourth hour, when the little clock struck seven thirty nine, did Xaldin start to stir from his deep sleep, the sound of Xigbar's play list overpowering his own. He eventually took the wheel at the third gas station, where gas was actually bought alongside the candies, and somewhere between Polysics and Flyleaf, Luxord finally awoke. There wasn't really much to say about this as the only action he really took consisted of him nursing on a coke and occasionally chewing on a liquorish vine.

It was sometime around eight forty did Luxord actually wake from his strange daze, and much like the way he awoke from earlier this morning; it was Larxene who took action.

"Change," Larxene said before stepping out the car door.

Luxord looked around, squinting his eyes as he looked through the window to see nothing but a few trees and a couple of buildings, all of these surrounded by a cluster of what just had to be a bunch of all too excited tourists.

As you can esily imagine it took awhile before Luxord gathered the courage to walk out the sanctity of the car. But the need to brush his teeth overpowered all, so it was done.

"They're selling sandwiches for five dollars," Xaldin said as soon as Luxord got out of the restroom.

For those who were wondering, nothing really happened in the restroom. He changed, he freshened up a bit, and he did it all without touching much of the building and its contents. Luxord did not enjoy it, but a detailed description of how he felt was not needed, there just wouldn't be enough time to go over it. But at least he was wearing clean clothes.

"And people will buy them," Luxord said as he made his way back to the car. He looked to Xaldin. "What kind of sandwiches?"

"Does it matter," Xaldin said, "I'm still in shock that there are sandwiches that cost more than the ones at my college."

"And people will still buy them," Luxord said with a smile.

"I already want to go home," Xaldin said. "We live in a shitty neighborhood, in an apartment that lacks a pool, and I want to go home…"

"You never know how much value something has until you've lost it," Luxord said as he opened the car door and threw the bag of clothes back in. "where are Xigbar and Larxene?"

"Probably walking about," Xaldin said. "You can only sit in a car for so long before you undergo the symptoms of restless leg syndrome." He looked over to one of the buildings and sighed.

"What?"

"Xigbar's looking at the food…the expesnive five dollar food," Xaldin said.

"Fast metabolism," Luxord said, "it has its cons."

"How much longer till we get to Bishop," Xaldin asked. "I swear to god I'm about to go insane."

"Anything particularly interesting about the town," Luxord asked. "Aside from it being a place of actual intelligence…"

"It's close to Mammoth," Xaldin said.

"By how much," Luxord asked.

"At least a hundred miles," Xaldin answered.

"Wow, you actually made me excited," Luxord said.

Xaldin got into the car.

"Go get those two," Xaldin said. "The sooner we leave the better."

Luxord nodded his head and walked off to where he saw Xigbar. It was about now that he realized just how great it felt to walk. His legs literally felt like they had been freed from some trap. The cool air and bright sunlight seem to have another effect on him too. He was now awake and refreshed; the only thing needed now was a decent meal and access to email.

"Xaldin's anxious," Luxord said, poking Xigbar's back in a half assed attempt to get his attention.

"This stuff is dry," Xigbar remarked. "Needs mayo…"

"Well then, next time you get back here you'll be sure to have condiments at hand," Luxord replied. "Though, considering you've been here before, I'm surprised you went ahead and bought the darn thing."

"Well, normally we'd get burger King," Xigbar said, "but Larxene wants something g that doesn't involve heavily clogging her arteries."

"Oh," Luxord said. "Speaking of which; where is she?"

"Probably in the restroom," Xigbar said, "chicks take forever…"

"Well," Luxord said. "The sooner we head out the sooner we get decent food."

Food was more than enough to get Xigbar to throw away the unsatisfying meal and heading out to the vehicle.

"I hear you," Xigbar said.

Luxord nodded his head and looked around the area once more. He couldn't see the young blonde in the wasteland of a rest area, and he figured Xigbar may be right about the restroom. He wasn't sure how it could take so much longer for her to get business done, but figured to wait around the area and get to her as fast as possible.

He only took a few steps before spotting the trademark antennas that belonged to Larxene. Xigbar had been right. He walked over to the young woman, already preparing himself for her ever wonderful words of wisdom.

"Well, you look nice," she said with a smirk.

"Yes, thank you for your wonder taste in fashion," Luxord said. "Xaldin's eager to get the gel out of here-and so am I."

"Wow, you're actually eager to get there," Larxene said with a small laugh. Luxord slowed his pace as he let the girl catch up to him and walk aside with him. Larxene hurried up and made her way to the car, Luxord parallel to her stride.

"Spending five minutes here is enough," Luxord said.

"Since when have you been so horribly antisocial," Larxene asked, looking up to him with a frown. "I mean yeah, you're a writer, but that doesn't mean you got to take the persona of one…"

"It's not that I'm antisocial-it's that I dislike those who dress in bright clothing and talk to everyone they come across to," Luxord said.

"I dress brightly," Larxene said.

"But do you dress in a quirky fashion that practically says the words "tourist"," Luxord asked.

"No," Larxene answered.

"Well then," Luxord said.

"My god you need to make some more friends," Larxene said. "It cannot be healthy for you to live such a life where you consistently stereotype everything you spot."

"It helped me avoid those who would easily corrupt my life," Luxord said in an ever so casual tone. "At least it did till you introduced me to Xigbar."

"Consider him the spice to your bland, tasteless life," Larxene said.

"Xaldin and Zexion are not bland," Luxord answered.

"Well," Larxene said, "maybe not Xaldin so much. He does have his moments…" She smirked, "but Zexion has the personality of a wet towel…"

"You're cruel," Luxord said.

"Axel, Xigbar, and Marluxia have been good to you," she said with a smile, "you just don't know it."

Now, Larxene had a way of picking out friends. And for some reason, everyone she befriended seemed to have some sort of disorder, at least in Luxord's opinion, which made them horribly unbearable. Axel was befriended during Larxene's eighth grade year, when she was alone and without her beloved sidekick, due to the boundary lines for schools. He was a quirky little thing that only seemed to grow skinnier by the year. Sometime during the eleventh year he got his face tattooed…with what appeared to be crybaby tears….that were green. Axel also had a thing for his hair, spiking it to the point were Luxord was sure it could be dubbed a landmark. He was also…a bit eccentric; Luxord never asked, so Axel never told. But he was a bit likable in some cases, during those rare moments when he wasn't being annoying as hell. Next was the bast-err, Marluxia. Marluxia was lost and found in the ninth grade during fashion class. Both of them didn't want to be there, and being that they both hated the fashion class that made them use safety scissors, it was only a matter of time before Marluxia followed Larxene around. Now, Luxord never really liked the pinked haired being, and for a good sort of reasons. Unlike Axel, who was obviously rooting for the other team, therefore making him as threat less as could be, Marluxia wasn't. Like Luxord, he was often said to be charming and quite likable, he was smart and athletic too. Basically, he was too damn perfect. And to top it all off, the two dated; therefore making Marluxia the biggest douche in the whole world-to Luxord.

Xigbar was the final. Luxord didn't know too much on the details other than the two took the same cross country period together in college and somehow ended befriending each other within the remarkable period of possibly ten minutes. The next thing Luxord knew; the guy was inviting her to go run with him. Luxord wasn't all too sure whether Xigbar was considered a threat or not for the longest time, never knowing what the mans initiative was when he invited her to go hang with him. But after being asked along one day to go to Six Flags, he soon saw the relationship the two shared and was able to accept Xigbar into the pool of friendship. They had a brother sister relationship-thank god. But what made Xigbar so hard to relate to at times was the fact that he really didn't know too much about him. He didn't know where he lived, what he did for money, anything about his life, his orientation (Luxord figured and guessed him to be preference free), just nothing. And it made him want to know even more…

"I don't see how they improved my life," Luxord said, "unless you count years being taken from my life a positive thing."

"You love them," Larxene said with a smile.

"No I don't," Luxord corrected. There came a pause and Luxord then realized something. "How is it that you couldn't drag Marluxia along instead of me?"

"What," Larxene asked.

"You said Axel was filling in for you at work," Luxord pointed out, "but you could have taken Marluxia along."

Larxene smiled.

"And what would you have said two weeks ago if I had told you that I was bringing Marluxia," Larxene said. She saw Luxord's confident expression fade a bit as he realized how he had just walked into his own predetermined trap. "Exactly; a week with me and Marluxia-it would have drove you insane."

Luxord didn't dare say a thing.

"Maybe I should have said something," she said," then maybe you would be more willing in this whole fiasco of mine…"

"How did you get Xigbar into this," Luxord asked as he opened the door to the car. "I mean, surely he thought this would be something of a waste of time."

Larxene chuckled.

"Not everyone takes the same approach to life as you do Luxord," she said as she sat herself in the back. "That's your problem, you know?"

"Hurry up you two," Xigbar said. He turned the keys and awoke the car. "I want to get to the hotel before noon."

"Whatever," Luxord uttered ask sat himself next to Larxene. He looked to her for a brief second before finally asking; "what does that mean?"

"Well," Larxene said, "if you have to ask, then you really don't deserve to know." She chuckled a bit before letting her smile fade. She kicked the chair in front of her. "Don't you dare!"

"I didn't say anything," Xaldin said.

"I can see your smile…"

"Just excited to be on this wonder trip with you," Xaldin said in a tone that was way too fake to even be called fake.

"Bullshit," Larxene said.

"Exactly."

* * *

Nothing could really be said during the rest of the fourth hour, nor the fifth. In fact, nothing really of value happened, unless you count I Spy…

"I spy…something…blue," Xigbar said.

"The sky," Luxord said.

"Nope," Xigbar said with a laugh.

Luxord frowned. "What the hell do you mean no?"

"It's not the sky dude," Xigbar said.

"there is nothing out here," Luxord said angrily, forgetting that the four of the were playing a childish game, "how can you spy something blue aside from the sky if there is nothing blue out there?"

"good job Xigbar," Larxene muttered;" now we'll never hear the end of it…"

You see, nothing. Eventually the group hit a town, though it wasn't the one Xaldin wanted. Nope, it was just a little town; a town with a line of stores that one would only see in one of those movies where the set was taken in a small little town. Never in Luxord's life had he seen so many family owned stored and so little Taco Bells and Starbucks. True, there was a Carl's Jr. and a few other chain restaurants, but it was a rarity within the town, and Luxord had kept his eye out.

Of course by now the group was feeling quite famished for a decent meal, one that didn't consist of sugar and sweets. Larxene suggested they wait till Bishop, saying she could recall a few sit down restaurants from back when she was in high school during running camp.

So the group endured for another hour, finally heading to Bishop at ten. Luxord was just as horrified to discover that there were little to no chain stores, in fact, he was sure there were even more family associated stores. But in the end, his stomach couldn't care less and food was the only thing he could think of. Now, they twiddled it down to the choice of two restaurants, and believe it or not, it was Larxene who was the one trying to get the group to pick her choice. But three hungry guys easily overpowered her and in the end they ate the high calorie, just as bad as fast food, country restaurant. We wont go too far into detail about their dine in, other than the fact that Larxene was being a bit nit picky, but they did enjoy their meals in the end.

"Oh god," Xigbar said as he took a bite out of his pancakes. "It's like a party in my mouth."

"Why," Xaldin said sadly, "why can't we have restaurants like this back at home?"

Luxord shook his head as he tried to refrain the urge from shoving copious amounts of waffles in his mouth.

"Am I the only one here who doesn't find this food orgasmic," Larxene asked as she stared disdainfully at the three men. "Seriously, is there something wrong with my meal, or are you guys just that dysfunctional?'

And they filled up on gas once more before leaving the town. With full stomachs, the conversations that took place within the car were much more cheery and the strains were nowhere to be seen. And sometime around eleven forty five the most remarkable thing happened.

"Trees," Xaldin said out of nowhere.

Luxord, who had taken shot gun, pulled out his ipod and looked around. For the first time since yesterday, he could see bright green, and not just in patches, but everywhere. He could see huge mountains and could see the bright white that covered their huge gray masses. He saw trees that he was sure head never seen in his entire life, and he saw a sign that had a Deer on it and the words "Xing" right below it. He had only seen that sign during his driver education class.

"Holy shit," he muttered.

"We're finally here," Larxene said.

"Just got to get to the hotel…"

And within the next few minutes, there was a transformation of some sorts. The dozens of tress that surrounded the car grew to the hundreds of thousands, and the grass faded a bit as the ground was covered with rocks, pine twigs, and small piles of snow. Stores took over and filled the areas, then rows and rows of hotels and suites, each one covered ina decent amount of white. Luxord saw people, lots and lots of people, more than half of them with dogs. He also saw tourists, each one oddly heavily dressed, not all too used to the cold weather. And speaking of the weather; it was cold. Very cold…the car had no air conditioning on, and it was freaking cold.

"My god," Luxord muttered. He sat himself back into his seat, not wanting to look around anymore. This all had to be one of most beautiful things he had ever seen.

He was going to hate it here.

* * *

I know there isn't much Larxene going on here, but there will be. I managed to have the whole ride take place in just one chapter, so I'm pleased enough. There's going to be a lot more going on in the next chapter, and I plan to skip around a bit, so things wont drag.

And lastly, I know Luxord seems to be something of a prick. don't mention it-its all part of character development.


	4. Hating the snow

Enjoy, all five of you.

* * *

Chapter 5

Luxord had the strangest habit of hiding the good memories deep within the confines of his mind, while focusing on the darker ones. It wasn't like he was depressed or angry with life, but after experiencing a near death experience, his subconscious decided to best ensure survival was to learn to expect bad things to happen. No one is sure why or when he came to this decision, only that he did sometime after he was twelve, when the sudden death incident occurred.

Now, it wasn't Luxord who had personally experienced this sudden death moment. No, because even as a young boy he naturally avoided the many dangers of life. Yes, he had no problems with approaching the teeter totter, especially at his age, but other things did make him question his own motives. And being the mature boy he was, not counting the internet festivities and the occasional swear; he would come to the conclusion that he should avoid said action, whatever it was. Of course, the near death experience was something that couldn't be controlled by action either, unless you were a physician.

Yes, the cancer had returned, and it had arrived with the intent to take its revenge upon its past failure.

It was like a scene from a horror movie. Luxord watched as, one day, Larxene ran about, healthy as ever, only to end up in her bed, incapable of moving on her own, the very next. It wasn't fast, this act took several weeks before Larxene ended up bedridden, but it seemed like an overnight incident to Luxord. To see your best friend, whom you care deeply about, who once had pinned you down and threatened to feed you dirt suddenly end up in bed with needles all over their body, unable to move about due to easy bruising and deteriorating muscles…it really left an impression on you. It was the most frightening thing Luxord had ever experienced.

Now, for the longest time Luxord's parents were expecting that there would always be a possibility of this happening. It was his father who had decided to drag the boy from the dark lair called his room and take him out to the car where he would have "the talk".

"Luxord," he father had said, not really looking at the poor twelve year old.

"Yeah," Luxord said, not really making eye contact with his father.

"You know Larxene is sick," he said, fiddling with the steering wheel. The car had yet to leave the driveway.

There came a great pause, a combination of Luxord trying not to break into tears, lest he feel humiliated, and his father trying not to swear to himself, because he knew he just made his twelve year old son feel even worse. Bad enough he was going through puberty. It was here that Setzer wished Celes had been to one to talk to the boy.

"Look," he said, "I'm going to be completely honest with you."

Luxord then turned to his father and stared intently at him. Because despite knowing the man for twelve years, he hadn't a clue of what his father was capable of. Whatever words would be said would be surprising to say the least, and Luxord could only hope at that time that the words would not result in making matters worse.

"I'm not religious," his father said. "You know this. I've never been to church. I don't believe that there is some guy out there watching us and choosing when and where we'll kick the bucket. And I don't think he's fighting our battles either."

Luxord would have gone wide eyed if it were not for the fact that his mind was settled on Larxene. Not having yet to follow in his father footsteps, it was strange to hear such things from an adult, let alone his parent. Luxord believed in god. He believed in god, and during this hectic time of panic, he did nothing but pray to that strange being in hopes that he would find it in himself to give Larxene another chance. True, at his age it seemed sort of foolish to pray to an invisible man in hopes of curing cancer, but it was all Luxord had in his limited arsenal. But he kept on listening to his father.

"You're friend, Larxene," his father continued, "She's a sweet girl. She's strong; fought this thing before now, didn't she?"

Luxord nodded his head slowly, keeping silent.

"And she beat it," he said. "She beat and she got better now, didn't she?"

"Yeah," Luxord had said.

"Well now," his father said. "Do you think, right now, she's hoping god will help her fight this battle?" Setzer leaned over a bit and looked the boy into the eye. "Do you think she's depending on him to save her…or do you think she's fighting on her own, only depending on the aid of a good doctor?"

Luxord remained silent.

"I'm not saying there is a god, or that you should or shouldn't believe in him, Luxord," he said in a most serious tone. "I'm saying that, in reality, we have to deal with the hand that's been given to us, and that we can't have someone try to help us out of it. Life simply doesn't' work that way." He frowned. "I know this isn't the answer you want to hear, but such is. You've been given a good hand, and your life has been good. She hasn't."

Luxord sank into his seat and had begun eyeing the car door. At his age the last thing he wanted was to hear things like this. The last thing he wanted was to think that he would lose a friend.

"Listen. Luxord," he heard his father say. "Before you leave the car, think about this; considering that Larxene has been in this situation before; wouldn't you have faith in her to believe that she may have another trick up her sleeve to get out of this situation?"

Luxord turned to his father and frowned.

"Life not some stupid game," he said bitterly.

"I'm not saying that it is," his father said, "however, it has several traits of a game. There are winner and there are losers."

Luxord grabbed on to the car door and opened it. No sooner had he done this did he feel a hand grab on to his shoulder.

"And if you want to win, you need a winning strategy."

The conversation had ended here. Luxord walked away from the talk and returned to his room. He and his father went back to hardly saying a word to one another, and Luxord decided that he would do whatever he could to not end up like him-a fruitless task.

But that wasn't to say that words were wasted. Luxord really did think about what his father had told him, and to some extent it sank down.

Life was not a game, but it was like one. The main difference was there were no winners, because in the end you'll end up dead like everyone else. It was a rather dark thought for a twelve year old boy, but it kept him going for an extra week as he lay on his bed, contemplating over his life and such.

A week later Larxene would finish her chemo, her health taking a surprising turn for the better. She would be able to walk on her own five days after that, and she would get to hear the lovely news that both her kidneys were still functioning, though only at a minimum. And Luxord soon decided to expect the worse in things. Because winning games all the time was just plain unrealistic.

…

It was three in the morning when Luxord woke up. His eyes peeked through the many sheets that he covered himself in, and the very first thing he saw was the window. A thin residue of liquid seemed to coat the layer of glass, produced by him no doubt. From the cloudy other side he could see white flakes dropping at an incredible speed. He blinked a few times in order for his eyes to focus better at the falling shapes.

One by one they fell, and Luxord continued to watch in silence. He could hear nothing, absolutely nothing.

He soon fell asleep.

* * *

The first day was something close to bearable for Luxord as much of it was spent just moving his belongings into the hotel room and resting himself from the all too long drive. He had one the game of rock-paper-scissors, and was granted to have one of the three bedrooms, leaving Alden and Xigbar to fight over the remaining one, as it was obvious that Larxene would get a room by default. Xigbar ended up getting the pull out bed located in the living room, which to Luxord could either be a good thing or a terrible mistake. He had no idea whether Xigbar was a clean enough fellow to be trusted with the couch-bed, but at the time of the decision, it really didn't matter to him. The only thing that seemed to have gone though the platinum blondes mind at the moment was hurrying up and unpack so that he could fall into a deep coma and hopefully get through the week without waking up other than going to bathroom.

But he was only so lucky, as he usually tended to be.

As soon as he was done packing, he and Xigbar were sent to go and get some much needed groceries. So instead of him passing out as planned, he found himself right back in a car, sitting and waiting to get to their next destination. After buying said groceries, and growing a deep hatred of cars, Larxene suggested they walk around the area. Why? Well….if only Luxord could figure out that very answer himself. Of course, he flat out refused this offer, suggesting that he'd just acquaint himself with the hotel room, and that Larxene and Xigbar could be on their merry way. Believe it not though; Xaldin did decide to go out with the two, leaving Luxord to wallow in his upsetting state of misery alone. He tried to go to sleep, but found the cold air to be too cold for his liking. There were blankets in the many closets, but Luxord didn't feel too comfy with using them, not all too sure whether they had been cleaned properly. He had seen the many dogs on the car ride to the hotel and to the store, and the last thing he wanted was dog on him. So he gave up soon after and decided to wander about the hotel, figuring it would be warm enough for him to walk around without the worry of possible frostbite. How on earth Larxene was going to run about in short he had no idea.

Eventually some time passed and Luxord found himself lying on his bed, trying to think of a way to entertain himself without the use of a laptop or computer, when he heard the door open and the sounds of his beloved friends. He would've strangled Larxene on sight if he had the strength to walk down the fleet of stairs…a walk through the hotel; had taught him one thing about this place, and that was that he simply did not belong.

An hour later of sitting around, it was decided that dinner would be bought, and that it would be fast food-because anything else simply would not do. This time it was Larxene who would venture out to the strange world that was full of trees, snow, and dare we mention…fresh air. Now, she asked Luxord if he wanted to come along, and that if he did he could pick the burger joint, but he flat out refused, assuming she was only picking on him. But it should be known that this was not so. Larxene had seen Luxord, and she knew he was in distress from the sudden changes and that all he really needed was a bit of closure. She was actually trying to be nice for once, and figured s a ride with her would be enough to soothe him a bit. After all, what better way to help ease the suicidal thoughts that spend time with someone you've known since childhood, right? But yeah, Luxord said no, so Larxene went on her way without him while Luxord sat on the couch, staring blankly at Xaldin's camera and the pictures he had taken of the snow. She'd even offer up buying ice cream, but it didn't help Luxord budge. Apparently pictures of snow were much more appealing to him.

This pretty much summed up the rest of the day, not including Luxord eating food in silence or later attempting to not freeze to death as the weather then dropped several degrees, leaving his heaviest jacket, a dark blue Hollister jacket-which we all know isn't enough to keep someone warm in these conditions, utterly useless. Sometime later he woke up to the second day, which would prove to be much worse than the previous one. In fact, if it were not for the following day, Luxord was sure the first would have not been bearable at all….it would have been lousy at best. But no, the next would prove to make the first look like a walk through the park, which was really saying something considering he had spent several hours trying not to go crazy in a car.

But yes, the second day. He woke up at five, which alone was enough for him to homicidal on everyone, to find Larxene and Xigbar leaving and getting ready for their morning run. He wasn't sure why they had to get up so early, considering Larxene had never done such a thing while they were together, but rather than question the situation he decided to try to fall back to sleep. He eventually gave up on this as he realized that he was awake in a room that wasn't his, in an environment where he really didn't belong, and his nerves could detect the unbearable cold weather. So he got out of bed and went about what would be his normal morning antics; clean himself up and get some food in him. Taking a shower worked out well…for about ten minutes, and then he decided to get out only to find his body exposed to barely forty degree weather. Even after getting dressed he found himself shivering, realizing that he probably should have done more to look up on the weather for this godforsaken land.

He spent most of the day in the car again, driving from place to place, trying to understand what the hell Xigbar was telling him as he gave out what had to be the vaguest directions ever. There was actually no direction in particular; the whole point of the drive was to simply find a place with enough snow for the four to play with. Larxene and Xigbar had seen and held snow before, being that this wasn't their first time in Mammoth, but Luxord and Xaldin were not so lucky. Neither Luxord nor Xaldin had ever played with the white stuff, whatever it was, being that they had spent most of their time in southern California, where the odds of snow falling and lasting more than a few minutes were up there with winning the lottery. Luxord had seen snow a few times during those few winter breaks where he and his sister had been so unlucky to have been dumped at their grandparents in England, but he had never held it in his hands. His father had made it a goal to hurry over and hurry back, not finding the company of his in-laws to be pleasing. Luxord could say with embarrassment that he had spent three hours in a foreign country before going right back on the plane.

"Who would have thought there would be so much snow in the park," Xigbar said with a laugh.

"Who would have thought-you're an idiot," Xaldin hissed angrily and he held on to himself. He looked around the park and shook his head and he tried to keep himself from freezing. "There's nobody here by the way…"

Luxord took a deep breath, not minding the sting it gave him and then gave a long sigh, staring at the steam that rolled right out of his mouth. He gave a glance around the park, staring at the many mounds of snow that seemed to be all about the area. It was quite an interesting scene. He couldn't quite give a reason to it, but he found the area to be quite quaint. There were a few people walking around, but it was rather quiet and there didn't seem to be enough people to become too bothersome. He actually liked it, finding the one and only advantage to this awful weather.

"I wonder if there is enough to build a snowman," Larxene muttered, looking around at the cluster of snow. "I mean…I really don't want to have to use dirty snow." she frowned and made a face at the very though if it. "I really wouldn't like that."

"Fuck the snowman," Xigbar said. "We'll make snow balls and throw them at passersby."

"What," Luxord said suddenly. The very notion seemed to frighten him beyond belief. Not frighten…it also angered him and disgusted him. There was also a spark of curiosity that seemed to light up at the thought, but he knew better than to feed that urge. Face it, in the real world, people who throw snow balls get cited for disturbing the peace.

Larxene smirked.

"And what, dare I ask; do I tell the police when they arrive to arrest you?"

"Tell them I have ADHD," Xigbar said with a laugh, "and tell them I left my Adderall at home and just couldn't help myself."

"That's terrible," Xaldin said. "How could you joke about that?"

"Who said I was joking," Xigbar said as he knelt over to roll up his first ball of snow. "I left the shit at home-figured I wouldn't have to concentrate on having fun."

Luxord watched in fascination as a ball of white was created. It was a strange sight to behold, never really seeing real snow being shaped before, and never doing so himself, and it almost made him want to join in on the activity. Xigbar soon stood up, the white misshapen ball in his hand and smiled proudly at it.

Xigbar turned to Larxene.

"Hey beautiful," he said.

Larxene glared at Xigbar, her arms folded

"Xigbar, I swear to god I'll castrate you-"

One would assume the reason behind Larxene not finishing her sentence was because Xigbar had pummeled her with the ball of snow. I bet that's what you were all thinking right now, wasn't it? The snowball hit her in the face and therefore she couldn't finish her sentence. Because that's just how mature he was.

Well, you're wrong.

What, in fact, had happened was that Xigbar, not Larxene, had been hit with a snowball; and Xaldin had been the one to throw it. The reason why Larxene didn't finish her sentence was because she was too busy laughing as Xigbar tumbled to the floor.

Luxord turned to Xaldin, the look of slight surprise on his face.

He smirked, "how long have you wanted to do that?"

"Ever since he decided to go along with Larxene's plan and drag us here," Xaldin answered as he kneeled down and began forming a snowball. "That and I figured he just naturally deserved it."

"I suppose," Luxord said. He turned, looking over at Xigbar. "You aright?"

"Screw you," Xigbar hissed, getting up from the ground and dusting off any dirt and snow that ended up on him.

"Just concerned," Luxord said, trying his best to not laugh.

"Xaldin," Xigbar yelled, gaining his balance and hurrying over where Xaldin knelt; while he was at his weakest.

Xaldin looked up and smirked.

"I will destroy you," Xigbar hissed.

"Now, now," Larxene said, placing a hand on Xigbar. She wiped a tear from her eye and smiled at Xigbar. "No need to get murderous over a silly snowball fight now?"

"Says you," Xigbar said. "You look like you're about to freaking die from laughter!"

"Because it was funny," Larxene said. She smirked and glanced down to Xigbar. "My knight in shining armor?"

"Expect one to hit you soon," Xaldin replied.

"Now Xaldin, I'm sure you want to be able to have kids later when you get married," Larxene said in a somewhat threatening tone. She looked up to Luxord and smiled. "Why don't you play with Luxord-he could use the attention."

"Don't you dare bring me into this," Luxord said immediately after. He took a step back, not that he was expecting to get assaulted by snow, but in an attempt to get closer to the car in case he should be assaulted by snow. To summarize it; he really didn't want to get hit with a snowball. "That aside, three against one isn't really fair…"

"Who said I was playing," Larxene questioned. "I just wanted to make a snowman. I'm not like you guys; I'm peaceful and sophisticated."

"Bullshit," Xigbar coughed. Larxene reacted to this by hitting the backside of his head.

"That's still two against one," Luxord pointed out.

"Are you really that afraid," Xaldin questioned, getting up from his position. He chuckled a bit. "I knew you weren't one for physical activities…but seriously; it's just snow. It's not like it's going to kill you."

"Says the man with the weapon in his hands," Luxord said as he eyed the white ball in Xaldin's possession. He took another step back. Just three hundred more steps and he'd be safe within the car.

Xaldin shrugged. "Perhaps; would you prefer a free for all?" He looked and turned to Xigbar, "we each roll up a ball and then fight-no teams whatsoever…"

Actually Luxord disliked that. He didn't like having to deal with two different strategies. One thing if it were both Xaldin and Xigbar together, he could figure some sort of defensive strategy from that. But having to deal with two?

"I can do that," Xigbar said. "I don't need to worry about Luxord being a threat, just as long as I get you back-"

"-would Larxene like to partake in this battle," Xaldin asked, ignoring Xigbar's threat as if it were something of little importance. "I'd like to think a woman of your status would be able to gain a point or two."

Larxene feigned a laugh. "Am I supposed to believe in any of the words you're saying?"

"Yes," Xaldin said. "Yes, in fact, you are."

"Ha," Larxene said. "I'll be waiting in the car. When the three of you are done making a mess of yourselves we can go do something more creative."

"Because snowmen are far more important," Xaldin said.

"Exactly," Larxene said.

Right now Luxord really wanted nothing more than to get out of this. He didn't care how pathetic it would have sounded; he would have made a mentioning to Larxene's snowman idea being acceptable right now if it could get him out of this mess. That and he really didn't want his first experience of snow being frightening and in need of harsh repressing. There was nothing harmful about building three giant balls of snow and putting them together. He wasn't a coward or anything, he just disliked getting cold and wet and bruised at once.

"You're just afraid I'm going to hit you with a ball of snow," Xaldin said. "A ball of frozen water."

"Looks like those years at college are finally paying off,' Larxene said. "So good to know."

Xaldin sighed. "Fine, go off…"

"I will," she said, walking off in the direction Luxord so desperately wanted to go. He sank a little when she passed him by, smiling proudly at herself for getting away with a cold genocide in the making.

"Right," Xaldin said. He turned back to Xigbar. "You and Luxord go make your first snowballs, that way we'll all be ready and equal in status."

Luxord sighed. He leered over at the melting snowball in Xaldin's hands, staring at its shine and changing density. Luxord had only taken a year worth of chemistry, but even he saw the unfairness in Xaldin's snowball. It was smaller, but it was hardening in his hands.

"What about you," Luxord asked.

"Hmm?"

"You're snowball's melting," Luxord pointed out.

Xigbar immediately looked up and stared intently at the small snowball.

Xaldin smiled. "Why yes," he said, lifting his hand up and staring at the melting ball. "It appears to be melting alright."

"Yes."

"Mhmm."

"…maybe you should get rid of it,' Luxord said.

"Probably," Xaldin said.

"Most definitely."

"Yes…"

"…'

"Well," Luxord said.

"Give me a minute," Xaldin said, staring at the small ball.

Luxord took another step back, causing Xaldin to chuckle a bit.

"Now, now," Xaldin said. "You just get to making that snowball of yours…" He took a step to the side and hurriedly grabbed some snow from the ground and added it to his snowball. "…oh, and get up."

Luxord frowned, "why?"

Xaldin looked to Xigbar and then to Luxord. "Because if you don't Larxene's probably going to think you threw the snowball, Luxord."

"What?"

"And she'll most likely have no problem killing you," Xaldin said.

Luxord shook his head.

Xaldin nodded his.

"Xaldin…"

"Do it," Xigbar said, grinning widely. It seemed he forgot all about Xaldin's past offense and only seemed to think about what Xaldin was scheming.

"Don't," Luxord said. "We have five more days up here and the last thing I want is to have to go through them with a pissed off Larxene!"

"Better than going through a pissed off you," Xigbar commented.

"Yeah, well I'll be pissed as hell," Luxord threatened. "Bad enough I'm stranded here, and now you're acting like a child!" Luxord stomped his foot into the iced ground, glaring at Xaldin. "You, out of all the people, decided to go native?"

Xaldin rolled his eyes.

Then he threw the snowball.

And as it passed by Luxord and made its way toward it designated target, you could bet that Xaldin and Xigbar were hauling ass to the playground, figuring it to be the safest place aside from the snow filled woods. And Luxord just stood there, like and idiot, only making movement when he heard the snowball hit Larxene with a hard crunching sound.

All Luxord could do was flinch when he heard the loudest, crudest swear he had ever heard in the past several hours-not coming from him.

Oh god he was going to kill Xaldin.

* * *

"There's nothing to watch," Xigbar whined. He grabbed hold of the remote and began flipping through the channels. Luxord glanced up from the book he was reading and looked over to see the stations on the television being changed every other second. He went right back to the book. "Nothing," Xigbar whined, throwing the remote to the floor.

"Try not to destroy the blasted thing," Xaldin muttered as he walked out from his room. He walked over and picked the remote from the floor. He analyzed carefully and sighed. "You were serious about that Adderall, weren't you?"

"Yes," Xigbar said. "Why on earth would I joke about that?"

Xaldin groaned.

"Don't suppose we can get you a prescription over here, can we," Xaldin asked.

"Need to be a resident," Xigbar said. "Sides, not like it's a bad thing, like, one out of six people have it or something…"

"That explain so much," Luxord muttered.

"Oh look, it talks," Xaldin said, smirking at Luxord.

"Not at you," Luxord said.

"You technically are right now," Xaldin said.

Luxord pouted and buried his face in the book.

"Try to not ruin the next few days," Xaldin said, taking a seat in the armchair next to the sofa where Luxord and Xigbar sat. "I'm sure Larxene will forget all about it in a few hours."

"I didn't deserve that," Luxord said, lifting his head up and leering angrily at Xaldin. "I did not deserve that at all…"

"Poor Larxene," Xigbar chuckled. "Bet she didn't expect that to happen…and to think she thought you were the one to do it…"

And that's what seemed to upset Luxord the most. The very notion that Larxene would assume that he would go and throw a snowball at her…him? He had made it clear that he wanted nothing to do with this everlasting winter wonderland, and that he also didn't want to partake in the snowball fight, and she thought he threw a snowball at him. And she gave him absolutely no chance of explaining himself. Even when the evidence was clear that he didn't do it either. Xaldin and Xigbar were nowhere to be seen, surely that would have been enough that he was innocent? Sure, he didn't have a snowball in his hands, but he doubted that would be enough for her to assume that he was guilty…right?

This brought a whole new meaning to lost in translation.

Luxord had only seen Larxene so pissed off very few times. And he had been lucky enough to say that he had never been the cause of her outbursts. Until now, he was usually good with staying on her better side. He never had to wonder what she would be like if angered by him. He couldn't imagine what it was lie, until now.

"I didn't do it," Luxord said. "And why on earth she didn't realize you were the culprit-"

"You know," Xaldin said, "you ought to go have a talk with her." He chuckled. "It would be the mature thing to do."

"I despise you," Luxord said.

"What a terrible thing to say to your beloved friend," Xaldin muttered sarcastically. He played with the remote, checking to see if it was in working condition. "…congratulations, Xigbar; you've destroyed the thing."

"New record," Xigbar said delightfully.

"No, I seriously do," Luxord said. "I had a wonderful relationship, without a care, and now she's out to murder me while I sleep."

Xaldin stared hard at Luxord for about four seconds before settling into his seat and laughing his heart out. He held on to himself as he tried to control his laughter, Luxord left only capable of getting more upset at this act.

"What's so funny," he asked defensively. He put the book on the table, a sign that this conversation was beginning to go downhill. As if it hadn't already. And as if it could be called a conversation to begin with.

"That look on your face," Xaldin replied.

"What look," Luxord asked.

Xaldin took a breath and calmed himself. "You know you smiled, just right now, when you talked about Larxene?"

"…"

Luxord had cupped his hands together, his face looking down as he questioned whether he had performed such an act without realizing it. He figured he had some restraint over his actions, no matter what they be. Truth be told, he cared for Larxene a lot more than a friend should, but he never tried to change that. He knew better than to question over and over why Larxene dumped him out of the blue, and he knew better than to try to reconcile without cause. Of course, he thought about it, but knew he'd never get anywhere. So it remained a thought. A simple thought. A thought that he had controlled of.

"Did I really do that," he said, burying his head in his hands. He groaned. "Ugh…"

"Oh you poor thing," Xaldin said, not really paying much attention to Luxord's self loathing. Something like this probably should be taken seriously, but after the twenty something periods where Xaldin found the younger man just lying around in anger and frustration, wondering why someone as perfect as him could lose someone just as equally perfect as Larxene, sort of downplayed it.

Still, as a friend, he found himself in a situation where trying to make Luxord feel semi better about all of this was something of a requirement.

"Shut it," Luxord said.

"Is this the part where I leave," Xigbar asked.

"No, you can stay," Xaldin said. He paused for a moment and looked over to the hallway, inspecting it carefully. "Actually, can you check to see how long Larxene will be in there? I mean, I know women take long showers, but this moment calls for privacy and I would really hate it if Larxene were to walk on a conversation of this importance." He frowned. "Life changing moments like these need to be handled seriously."

Xigbar stared, awed by what had just been said. Everything Xaldin had said was said in such a tone, said in such a way one would wonder whether life of death was being put into the matter. And he had said it with a straight look on his face as well.

"Life changing moments," Luxord questioned. He sighed and sank into his seat a bit. That had to be the most ridiculous thing he had ever heard, and it had come from Xaldin no less.

"Yes," Xaldin said, "because to insure your very survival you need to adapt and evolve from the state you've grown so accustomed to."

Luxord's only reaction to this was his jaw dropping just a bit. Despite seeing the good intention behind the man's actions, he was a bit upset with what he was hearing. It disturbed him. Xaldin had just gone through a break up, how dare he try to make him feel better about his current non existent relationship. It was one thing when he attempted to help Xaldin out when he was dumped, another when he tried to help him.

Consider it a pride sort of thing, but Luxord didn't want his help. The man's mind was a strange sort of thing. He could solve all sorts of problems, and yet here he was trying to hide from the fact that he was a mere human, thus flawed.

Oh god, what was wrong with him?

"I hate," he muttered.

"You need to get over her," Xaldin said.

"You didn't get over your ex," Luxord pointed out.

"But I will," Xaldin said. He smiled. "Oh yeah, it sucks, it really sucks when you're dumped. I feel like there's no point, that everything is over and nothing can good will ever happen again, but by god I will get over her." Xaldin leaned closer to Luxord. "Because, unlike you, I'm not hopeless. I refuse to spend the next half year wondering why she dumped me when I was so obvious perfect and everyone else is mediocre at best."

"I never said anything like that," Luxord said. He gave a quick glance over to the bathroom and then glared at Xaldin. "I never said she was perfect, nor did I insinuate that I was."

"You think it all the time," Xaldin said. "And right now, as you did, you got all giddy-"

"Giddy? I did not get all giddy," Luxord snapped.

"Oh yes you did," Xaldin said. "Otherwise you wouldn't have smiled…"

"You make it sound like I hardly do," Luxord muttered. "I'm not a downer, you know. I actually do smile. And I know you've seen me smile to. I smiled when you threw the snowball at Xigbar."

"I'm pretty sure that counted more of a smirk than a smile," his friend said.

Luxord got up from the sofa he was sitting on and approached his friend. Xaldin gave only a small glance when Luxord hovered above him, standing ever so confidently at him. When the remote was snatched away from him, by Luxord no less, he found himself forced to look up and stare Luxord right in the face.

A very nice face it was.

"Right," Xaldin said, confused. "Is there something you'd like to tell me?"

"You see this," Luxord said, pointing at his face. Xaldin's eyes rested on the forced smile spread across Luxord's strained face.

"You're constipated," he asked.

If it weren't for the brotherly love, Xaldin would have suffered a blow to the head.

"I'm smiling," he said.

"And you're not fanaticizing about Larxene?"

"Keep it up Xaldin, go ahead," Luxord said. "I understand. I screwed up and I forgot, for one second, that she and I aren't together…"

"-and you over reacted to the snowball," Xaldin said.

"No, I doubt that," Luxord said.

"You would have laughed if she was with you," Xaldin said. "Even if you hadn't thrown it, a likely possibility since you're afraid of harming a fly."

"That's because it wasn't funny," Luxord hissed.

"It was funny," Xaldin retorted. "And if you were together, you would have been the one to tell her it was a joke-not trying to defend yourself."

"Not funny," Luxord muttered.

"Hilarious," Xaldin replied. "Absolutely, positively hilarious."

"Listen," Luxord said. "This conversation, this life changing moment; it's going nowhere. And it's pissing me off. And I'd rather it end now."

"How cute," a voice said from right behind Luxord. A sarcastic voice.

Luxord turned around, his eyes widened. Xaldin remained in his seat, though he had a look of modeate surpsie as well, though he seemed more amused than anything. In fact, as he caught glimpes of the figure he found shimself doing whatever he could from not laughing.

"What's so "cute"," Luxord asked.

Larxene smirked. "You and your boyfriend." She turned and walked over to the door. "I'm leaving. I'll probably be back in about twenty."

"Where are you headed," Luxord asked.

"None of your business," Larxene said with a cute smile spread across her face. She stared at Luxord's serious expression and gave a quick roll of the eyes. "But, if you must know, I'm walking over to get a coffee, that's all?"

"Why walk to get a coffee," Luxord questioned.

Xaldin sighed, "she's walking, Luxord. Exercise."

He frowned.

"Aww, does Luxy want to come along," Larxene asked. "Or are you afraid a deer will get me?"

"No," Luxord said defensively.

"Still upset over everything, hmm," Larxene said. She feigned a sigh. "Oh well, I wasn't going to invite you anyway. Not after that plunder of yours…"

Luxord didn't even bother.

He watched the young woman walk out the door, closing it swiftly and disappearing from his sight. He stared at the door. And stared. He then looked back to Xaldin.

"And what were you going to say, exactly," he asked.

"Aside from you being absolutely hopeless," Xaldin said, "need to either get over her or just get back with her…"

"She dumped me," Luxord said, "and I don't even know why…"

"Then just get over her," Xaldin said.

Impossible. How on earth was he supposed to do that? He wasn't. It was the only conclusion he could come to. Simple as that. There was no other option. If he could just "get over her", he would have a long time ago. But obviously he couldn't. Why else would he still be waiting for her? Waiting for her to walk right up to him and say "oops, I made a mistake", and for everything to go right back to normal. It was a foolish, wishful thought, but it was something that Luxord honestly thought deep within his subconscious.

"Luxord. Don't you dare…"

"I didn't say a thing," Luxord said. "Not a thing…"

"She's not just going to walk up to you and ask you if you want to get together again," Xaldin said. "This is not one of your stories, this is real life…"

"People do get back together in real life," Luxord said. "After fights or stuff…like that…"

"You two never fought," Xaldin mentioned carefully, trying not to upset his friend. "Larxene would say something and you would do it. No fights whatsoever…"

"Which is why I can't figure out why on earth she would dump me," Luxord said distastefully. He groaned, shaking his head in frustration. He pouted. "It's not fair…"

"Life is never fair," Xigbar said. The older male walked out into the living room, the two noticing his hair down and wet. "Look at this way, man; she's in a better place."

"…"

Luxord thought hard about Xigbar had said for a wondrous milli-second before calling it bull and going back to his previous thought. Xaldin had said that there were only two options. He really didn't want to watch Larxene fall in love with another man. Greed and instincts, along with some of that pure love mentioned ago in the first chapter, wouldn't let him do such a thing. He wanted her all for himself, and as awful as that may have sounded, it was full of good intent. But in the end of it all, he still didn't know why she had left him. How was he supposed to build something after that missing piece of information? Even if he could get over her…without knowing why he wasn't good enough left him a small dark hole within the pit of his stomach. So what exactly was he supposed to do?

"Damn," he muttered.

"What now," Xaldin asked.

"I can only think of one option," he muttered quietly. "But I doubt it would work…especially since its Larxene…"

"Murder is illegal," Xaldin said.

"Not murder," he said, "though, it might as well be, knowing my dignity will only go to hell once this is done."

Xaldin looked up in surprise. More than moderate. He was really shocked. And a shocked Xaldin was a rare thing, to say the least.

Xigbar frowned.

"I don't get it," Xigbar said, "What's he talking about?"

Luxord sat himself down and continued to ponder in silence, thinking carefully about the approach to task ahead. He had been with other women before, Larxene not being the first and only. But she wasn't like other women. She didn't go gaga over flowers and chocolates. She was so much more independent, and she didn't really on many things that normal girls did. But what could he expect from her? She grew up living a life where something horrible could possibly be waiting around the corner. She had to be different, stronger, better than other girls. That's why he loved her so goddamn much after all…

"…this will hurt," he concluded.


End file.
